Live Streaming
Program Highlight
Company Profile
International News (6893)
August
Russia backs China over 'provocative' Pelosi visit to Taiwan
Written by Nur Yasmin
Russia backed China on Tuesday over an expected visit to Taiwan by U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, warning Washington that such a provocative trip would put the United States on a collision course with Beijing.
Chinese leader Xi Jinping warned U.S. President Joe Biden against playing with fire over Taiwan in a call last week but three sources told Reuters on Tuesday that Pelosi was still set to visit the island.
"We cannot say for sure right now whether she will or will not get there, but everything about this tour and the possible visit to Taiwan is purely provocative," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Maria Zakharova, Russia's foreign ministry spokeswoman, said the expected visit was a provocative attempt by Washington to pile pressure on China - with whom Russia has forged a strong partnership in recent years.
"The USA is a state provocateur," she said. "Russia confirms the principle of "one China" and opposes the independence of the island in any form."
China views visits by U.S. officials to Taiwan as sending an encouraging signal to the pro-independence camp in the island. Washington does not have official diplomatic ties with Taiwan but is bound by U.S. law to provide the island with the means to defend itself.
In the Chinese civil war, Mao Zedong's Communists defeated the forces of the Kuomintang (KMT), or nationalist party, under Chiang Kai-shek, forcing him to flee to Taiwan in 1949.
China has repeatedly warned against Pelosi going to Taiwan, which it claims as its own, while the United States said on Monday that it would not be intimidated by Chinese "sabre rattling". (Reuters)
August
Lebanon allows departure of ship accused of carrying stolen Ukrainian grain
Written by Nur Yasmin
Lebanon's top prosecutor has lifted his seizure order on a ship accused by Ukraine of carrying stolen flour and barley, allowing it to sail after finding "no criminal offence committed", a senior judicial source told Reuters.
The ship, the Laodicea, remains unable to sail for the time being due to another seizure order issued by a judge in the northern Lebanese city of Tripoli, where the ship is docked, on Monday, the source said.
That seizure order was only valid for 72 hours, the judge who issued it previously told Reuters.
An official at the Ukrainian Embassy in Beirut said he could not immediately comment, and that the embassy would hold a news conference on Wednesday.
Ukraine has said that the Syrian-flagged ship was carrying some 10,000 tonnes of flour and barley plundered by Russia from Ukrainian stores following its February invasion of the country.
The Russian Embassy in Lebanon has said it had no information on the cargo. Moscow has previously denied stealing Ukrainian grain.
An official from the company that owns the cargo previously denied it was stolen and said that the ship would sail to nearby Syria should it be allowed to leave Tripoli.
The Laodicea arrived in Lebanon on July 27 and two days later top prosecutor Ghassan Oueidat ordered it seized pending investigations following a protest from the Ukrainian embassy and other Western nations.
On Monday, Ukraine asked Lebanon to cooperate on a criminal inquiry into the ship opened by a Ukrainian judge. Ukrainian authorities say the Laodicea travelled to a port in Russian-occupied Crimea closed to international shipping and that it took on cargo there before sailing to Lebanon.
Under a July 22 U.N.-brokered safe passage deal, the first ship carrying Ukrainian grain to world markets from its Black Sea ports since Russia's invasion looked set to arrive in Istanbul on Tuesday night, Turkey said.
The ship, the Sierra Leone-flagged Razoni, is to proceed to its final destination in Tripoli in Lebanon after inspections by U.N., Russian, Ukrainian and Turkish officials.
A Ukrainian Embassy official said Kyiv resumed grain exports to Lebanon in mid-July via ports on the Danube river bordering Romania.
The embassy said Lebanon would receive preferential treatment due to its official stance against Russia's invasion and that Kyiv would support Beirut as it faces bread shortages due to a three-year-long financial crisis. (reuters)
August
Kuwait formally dissolves parliament -state news agency
Written by Nur Yasmin
Kuwait formally dissolved parliament in a decree issued on Tuesday, state news agency KUNA said, as the Gulf Arab state's crown prince moved to resolve a standoff between the government and elected parliament that has hindered fiscal reform.
Last month Crown Prince Sheikh Meshal al-Ahmad al-Sabah, who took over most of the ruling emir's duties, said he was dissolving parliament and would call for early elections. On Monday he approved a cabinet headed by a new prime minister.
"To rectify the political scene, the lack of harmony and cooperation ... and behaviour that undermines national unity, it was necessary to resort to the people...to rectify the path," Sheikh Meshal said in the decree dissolving parliament.
Political stability in Kuwait, an OPEC oil producer, has traditionally depended on cooperation between the government and parliament, the Gulf region's most lively legislature.
The previous government resigned in April ahead of a non-cooperation motion in parliament against Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah al-Khalid, who late last month was replaced as premier by the current emir's son Sheikh Ahmad Nawaf al-Sabah.
Kuwait bans political parties but has given its legislature more influence than similar bodies in other Gulf monarchies.
Deadlock between government and parliament in Kuwait has often led to cabinet reshuffles and dissolutions of the legislature over the decades, hampering investment and reforms. The last time parliament was dissolved was in 2016. (Reuters)
August
Russia accuses U.S. of direct Ukraine war role, grain ship on track
Written by Nur Yasmin
Russia on Tuesday accused the United States of direct involvement in the Ukraine war, while the first ship carrying Ukrainian grain to world markets since Moscow's invasion continued its passage to Lebanon without problems.
Russia said it was responding to comments by Vadym Skibitsky, Ukraine's deputy head of military intelligence,
about the way Kyiv used U.S.-supplied long-range HIMARs rocket launch systems based on what he called excellent satellite imagery and real-time information.
Skibitsky told Britain's Telegraph newspaper there was consultation between U.S. and Ukrainian intelligence officials before strikes and that Washington had an effective veto on intended targets, though he said U.S. officials were not providing direct targeting information.
Russia's defence ministry, headed by a close ally of President Vladimir Putin, said the interview showed that Washington was directly involved despite repeated assertions that it was limiting its role in the conflict to arms supplies because it did not want a direct confrontation with Moscow.
"All this undeniably proves that Washington, contrary to White House and Pentagon claims, is directly involved in the conflict in Ukraine," the Russian defence ministry said in a statement.
"It is the Biden administration that is directly responsible for all Kyiv-approved rocket attacks on residential areas and civilian infrastructure in populated areas of Donbas and other regions, which have resulted in mass deaths of civilians," the defence ministry said.
There was no immediate reaction to the defence ministry's allegations from the White House or Pentagon.
Ukraine and the West accuse Russia of carrying out devastating missile attacks on civilian targets on an almost daily basis. Both sides deny deliberately targeting civilians.
Supplies of sophisticated long-range weapons systems from Western nations to Ukraine are seen as vital if Kyiv's forces are to turn the tide of the war, in which Russia relies heavily on long distance bombardments of urban areas.
SAFE PASSAGE
Russia's vebal attack on Washington came after Turkey said that the first ship carrying Ukrainian grain since Russia's invasion blocked exports more than five months ago was on track to safely arrive in Istanbul on Tuesday night.
The vessel's departure on Monday from the Ukrainian port of Odesa for Lebanon via Turkey under a safe passage deal has raised hopes of further such departures which could help ease a burgeoning global food crisis.
Turkey expects roughly one grain ship to leave Ukrainian ports each day as long as the safe passage agreement holds, a senior Turkish official, who asked to remain anonymous, said on Tuesday.
The United Nations has warned of the risk of multiple famines this year because of the war in Ukraine.
Monday's sailing was made possible after Turkey and the United Nations brokered a grain and fertiliser export agreement between Russia and Ukraine last month - a rare diplomatic breakthrough in a conflict that has become a drawn-out war of attrition since Russian troops poured over the border on Feb 24.
Ukrainian President Volodymr Zelenskiy in his nightly address late on Monday called the ship's departure "the first positive signal," but warned it was too early to draw conclusions or predict how things would play out.
"We cannot have illusions that Russia will simply refrain from trying to disrupt Ukrainian exports," said Zelenskiy.
Ozcan Altunbudak, Turkey's representative at a coordination centre created to oversee the restart of Ukrainian grain exports, said on Tuesday the vessel, the Sierra Leone-flagged ship Razoni, was on track to anchor at Istanbul on Tuesday night.
The only issue so far was a slight delay caused by bad weather, he said. The ship, which is carrying 26,527 tonnes of corn, was due to arrive in Istanbul at around midnight local time.
It will then be inspected by Russian, Turkish, Ukrainian and U.N. officials under the terms of the safe passage agreement before continuing its journey to the Lebanese port of Tripoli, its planned final destination.
There are other hurdles to overcome however before millions of tonnes of Ukrainian grain can leave, including clearing sea mines and creating a framework for vessels to safely enter the conflict zone and pick up cargoes.
Known as Europe's breadbasket, Ukraine hopes to export 20 million tonnes of grain held in silos and 40 million tonnes from the harvest now under way, initially from Odesa and nearby Pivdennyi and Chornomorsk, to help clear the silos for the new crop.
Russia has called the Razoni's departure "very positive" news. It has denied responsibility for the food crisis, saying Western sanctions have slowed its exports.
Russia and Ukraine accuse each other of laying mines that now float around the Black Sea and represent a hazard to shipping.
Also on Tuesday Russia publicly spelled out its solidarity on Taiwan with China, with whom is enjoys a close partnership, ahead of a possible visit there by U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova called the possible visit "a provocation" and said that Moscow supported Beijing's One China principle and opposed Taiwanese independence "in any form." (Reuters)
August
U.S. envoy signals optimism on Lebanese-Israeli maritime border deal
Written by Nur Yasmin
The U.S. official mediating a maritime border dispute between Lebanon and Israel said on Monday he remained optimistic about making progress towards a deal and looked forward to returning to the region to make a "final arrangement".
Amos Hochsteinmade the comments after meeting Lebanon's top leaders at the presidential palace, as he presses efforts to clinch a rare agreement between enemy states that should allow both to develop offshore energy resources.
"I remain optimistic that we can make continuous progress as we have over the last several weeks and I look forward to being able to come back to the region to make the final arrangement," Hochtein said.
There was no immediate comment from Lebanese officials. Prime Minister Najib Mikati gave a thumbs up as he emerged from the meeting that also included President Michel Aoun and Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri.
The United States in 2020 stepped up long-running efforts to mediate an agreement between Israel and Lebanon in indirect talks.
Tensions over the issue escalated in June when a ship arrived in an area deemed part of the disputed zone by Lebanon to begin developing a field for Israel.
Israel said the area in question - Karish - was firmly in its exclusive economic zone.
The heavily armed Lebanese group Hezbollah group - which is backed by Iran has fought numerous conflicts with Israel - has threatened military action if Lebanon is prevented from exploiting what it deems to be its offshore rights.
But it has also said it will respect the decision of the Lebanese government.
Lebanon and Israel are located in the Levant Basin, where a number of big sub-sea gas fields have been discovered since 2009. Israel already produces and exports gas. (Reuters)
August
Lebanon's ordeal: from civil strife to economic collapse
Written by Nur Yasmin
Lebanon marks the second anniversary on Thursday of the Beirut port explosion that killed 215 people and is widely seen as a symbol of corruption and bad governance by the sectarian ruling elite.
Here are some of the main crises over the past two decades in a country that has known little stability since the end of its 1975-90 civil war:
2005
Former premier Rafik al-Hariri is killed and 21 others die in a bomb attack on his motorcade in Beirut on Feb. 14.
Demonstrations erupt blaming the assassination on Syria, which deployed troops in Lebanon during the civil war and kept them there afterwards. Syria denies any role.
Syria's allies in Lebanon, who include the Iran-backed Hezbollah, stage rallies in support of Syria, but international pressure forces the troops out.
Three critics of Syria - Samir Kassir, Gebran Tueni, and George Hawi - are assassinated.
2006
In July, Hezbollah crosses the border into Israel, captures two Israeli soldiers and kills others, sparking a five-week war. At least 1,200 people in Lebanon and 158 Israelis are killed.
Tensions in Lebanon simmer over Hezbollah's arsenal. In November, Hezbollah and its allies quit the cabinet led by Western-backed Prime Minister Fouad Siniora and organise protests against it.
Anti-Syria politician Pierre Gemayel is killed.
2007
Hezbollah and its allies maintain a sit-in protest against the Siniora government for the entire year.
Anti-Syrian lawmakers Walid Eido and Antoine Ghanem are killed.
2008
A car bomb kills Wissam Eid, a police intelligence officer investigating the Hariri assassination, in January.
In May, the government outlaws Hezbollah's telecom network. Hezbollah calls this a declaration of war and its fighters take over mainly Muslim west Beirut. After mediation, rival leaders sign a deal in Qatar.
2011
A government led by Hariri's son and political heir, Saad, is toppled when Hezbollah and its allies quit due to disagreements over a U.N.-backed tribunal into the 2005 assassination.
2012
Hezbollah fighters deploy to Syria to aid President Bashar al-Assad in the country's civil war.
In October, a car bomb kills security official Wissam al-Hassan, whose intelligence service had arrested a pro-Syrian former minister charged with transporting Syrian-assembled bombs to wage attacks in Lebanon.
2013
A bomb kills ex-minister and Hariri advisor Mohamad Chatah.
2017
Sunni regional power Saudi Arabia, frustrated with Hezbollah's power in Lebanon, is accused of detaining Hariri in Riyadh, from where he unexpectedly resigned. Hariri had become premier again in 2016 in a deal in which Michel Aoun, a Hezbollah ally, became president. Both Riyadh and Hariri deny he was detained.
2018
Hezbollah and allies win a majority in Lebanon's first parliamentary vote since 2009.
2019
Despite growing economic troubles, the government fails to enact reforms that might unlock foreign support.
In October, a decision to tax internet calls ignites mass cross-sectarian protests accusing the ruling elite of corruption and mismanagement.
Hariri quits on Oct. 29. The financial crisis accelerates. Banks largely freeze depositors out of dollar savings. The local currency begins to crash.
2020
Hassan Diab becomes prime minister in January, backed by Hezbollah and its allies.
Lebanon defaults on its sovereign debt in March.
IMF talks flounder as ruling factions and banks object to a financial recovery plan.
On Aug. 4, a chemical explosion at Beirut port kills 215 people, wounds 6,000 and devastates swathes of Beirut.
The Diab cabinet quits. Hariri is designated to form a new government but cannot as parties squabble over portfolios.
A U.N.-backed tribunal convicts a Hezbollah member of conspiring to kill Rafik al-Hariri in 2005. Hezbollah denies any role.
2021
Poverty soars. Hariri gives up trying to form a government, trading blame with President Michel Aoun.
In August, the central bank declares it can no longer subsidise fuel. Shortages trigger violence at filling stations.
In September, Sunni tycoon Najib Mikati forms a government but it is paralysed by tension over the probe into the port explosion.
Hezbollah and its ally Amal demand the removal of investigating judge after he charges some of their allies. The Shi'ite parties call a protest and six of their followers are shot dead when violence erupts. Hezbollah blames the Lebanese Forces (LF), a Christian party; the LF denies this.
The investigation stalls amid a flood of legal complaints against the judge by officials whom he has charged over the disaster.
In October, Gulf states recall their ambassadors and Saudi Arabia bans all Lebanese imports in protest at comments by a pro-Hezbollah minister criticising Riyadh over the Yemen war.
2022
In January, the pound touches a low of 34,000 against the dollar, losing more than 90% of its value since 2019.
The World Bank accuses the ruling class of "orchestrating" one of the world's worst economic depressions.
Hariri declares he will not contest a parliamentary election.
In April, Lebanon reaches a draft IMF deal for a possible $3 billion in support, dependent on long-delayed reforms.
Gulf Arab ambassadors return, easing diplomatic tensions.
In May, Hezbollah and its allies lose their parliamentary majority in an election. But long-dominant parties maintain their grip, reappointing Shi'ite politician Nabih Berri and naming Mikati to form a new government.
The outgoing government approves a financial recovery plan. But banks reject it and Hezbollah says a new one is needed. (Reuters)
August
Vatican says pope to go to Kazakhstan; expected to meet Russian Orthodox patriarch
Written by Nur Yasmin
The Vatican said on Monday that Pope Francis will travel to Kazakhstan in September for a meeting of religious leaders, a gathering where the pope has said previously he hoped to meet with the Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church.
In a statement, the Vatican said Francis would be in the capital Nur-Sultan Sept. 13-15 to attend the VII Congress of Leaders of World and Traditional Religions.
Francis has said in several recent interviews that he hopes to meet there with Kirill, the patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church.
The Vatican statement announcing the trip did not mention Kirill. The statement was released in Russian as well as Italian and English. Kazakh and Russian are the country's two official languages.
Kirill has given his full-throated backing to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
Francis had planned to meet Kirill last month in Jerusalem after a trip to Lebanon but both were called off.
The late Pope John Paul II visited the Kazakh capital in 2001, when it was known as Astana. (Reuters)
August
Myanmar junta extends emergency rule, cites need for stability
Written by Nur Yasmin
The head of Myanmar's junta on Monday blamed instability for stalling efforts to implement a peace plan agreed with other Southeast Asian countries as he extended emergency rule for another six months.
The junta first declared a state of emergency after seizing power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in a coup in February last year.
Myanmar has been in chaos since then, with conflict spreading after the army crushed mostly peaceful protests in towns and cities.
The 10-member Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) agreed a five-point "consensus" to end hostilities last year, but there has been little sign of the junta implementing the five-point plan, which includes an end to violence and dialogue.
Junta leader Min Aung Hlaing said in a speech aired on state media that Myanmar had been striving to overcome the challenges of the coronavirus pandemic while facing internal violence.
"So it was difficult to implement the ASEAN consensus due to the lack of stability," said Min Aung Hlaing, adding that only when the situation was "normal" could progress be made.
Western governments denounced the coup and the detention on various charges of Nobel laureate Suu Kyi and numerous members of her party and supporters.
Some members of ASEAN, of which Myanmar is a member and which has a tradition of non-interference in each other's internal affairs, also criticised the generals.
While the junta has failed to implement the ASEAN plan, it has never rejected it.
"Our country is an ASEAN state so we value the conventions of ASEAN," Min Aung Hlaing said.
While Min Aung Hlaing did not mention the extension of the emergency in his speech, state media reported that a military government defence and security council had unanimously approved his request for six more months.
'PROGRESS IN SIX MONTHS'
The junta said it had to take power last year because of voting fraud in a November 2020 general election that Suu Kyi's party easily won. Election monitoring groups found no evidence of mass fraud.
The military has pledged to hold new elections in August 2023 though the timetable has already slipped and opponents do not believe it would be free and fair.
Security forces have killed more than 2,100 people since the coup, according to the Assistance Association for political prisoners, an activist group. The junta has said such tolls are exaggerated.
The true picture of the violence has become more difficult to assess since lightly armed People's Defence Forces have sprung up to take on the army, often in more remote areas where ethnic minority insurgents are also fighting the military.
In his speech, Min Aung Hlaing blamed "terrorists" for inflicting casualties. The military has branded as "terrorists" its armed opponents and a rival shadow National Unity Government set up by pro-democracy politicians.
The junta has faced sanctions from many Western countries and last week saw further condemnation after the execution of four democracy activists it accused of "terror acts".
Min Aung Hlaing also brought up the economy, which has slumped since the pandemic and as the coup ended a decade of reform.
"I think progress can be seen within six months," he said, citing the prospect of more jobs and a focus on farming.
The World Bank projects Myanmar's economy will grow 3% this fiscal year following an 18% contraction last year and warned that a return to pre-pandemic levels was unlikely in the near term. (Reuters)
August
U.S. and Japan pursue commercial diplomacy to counter China, envoy to Tokyo says
Written by Nur Yasmin
Chips, batteries and energy are key collaboration areas between the United States and Japan as the allies seek to secure supply chains and counter China, Washington's envoy to Tokyo said.
Former Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel has focused on "commercial diplomacy" since arriving as U.S. ambassador this year, pushing for business tie-ups in areas that have broader significance for economic security.
One U.S. company is now looking at a "major potential investment" related to chips in Japan, in what would mark the latest collaboration between the countries on semiconductors, Emanuel told Reuters in an interview.
He declined to elaborate or give a timeline.
"Commercial diplomacy is a big piece of an overarching economic collaboration and coordination between the United States and Japan," Emanuel said on Monday.
The two countries agreed on Friday to establish a new joint research centre for next-generation semiconductors.
Japan has said it will provide as much as 92.9 billion yen ($700 million) to help U.S. firm Western Digital Corp (WDC.O) and partner Kioxia Holdings boost memory chip output at a Japanese plant.
Meanwhile, Tesla supplier (TSLA.O) Panasonic Holdings Corp (6752.T) last month picked Kansas as the site for a new battery plant. That deal came together, Emanuel has said, after U.S. President Joe Biden talked with Panasonic executives while in Japan.
The cooperation comes as China has used its economic strength to pressure other countries, Emanuel said.
"There's a pattern here: if they don't like what you say politically, they put the muscle on you economically," he said, citing Japan's experience more than a decade ago when Beijing restricted rare earth export quotas after a territorial dispute.
In a joint statement on Friday, ministers from the United States and Japan said they opposed "economic coercion", although they did not name a specific country.
However, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said during a news briefing that "the coercive and retaliatory economic practices of the People's Republic of China force countries into choices that compromise their security, their intellectual property, their economic independence."
China has repeatedly said it never uses economic coercion against any country and is firmly opposed to all forms of coercion, politically and diplomatically. It has accused Washington of engaging in economic coercion in the name of national security.
Emanuel said that if a country is pressured by China, the United States needs to counter with "economic incentives", including using energy resources as a "strategic asset".
Japan, the world's largest LNG buyer, is a growing market for U.S. natural gas. Between 2018 and 2021 Japanese imports of U.S. LNG more than doubled, Japanese government data shows. The advanced nuclear reactors known as small modular reactors (SMRs) are another area of collaboration.
Emanuel declined to say whether U.S. House of Representatives Speaker Nancy Pelosi, who kicked off a tour of Asia on Monday, would visit Taiwan, the self-ruled island claimed by Beijing.
Concerns about Chinese tensions with Taiwan, which makes the vast majority of semiconductors under 10 nanometres that are used in smartphones, have driven countries like the United States and Japan to step up investment in chip production.
Emanuel said there also needed to be more investment in training skilled workers to support the chip industry.
"We both have to invest in more scientists, more engineers and in workers to do this," he said. (Reuters)
August
No Myanmar representation at ASEAN-led meeting, chair says
Written by Nur Yasmin
Myanmar will not be represented at an international gathering of foreign ministers in Cambodia this week, a spokesperson for the ASEAN chair said on Monday, after its military rulers declined a proposal to send a non-junta representative instead.
The Southeast Asian bloc ASEAN has since late last year barred the Myanmar junta from joining its meetings due to its lack of progress in implementing an ASEAN peace plan its generals agreed to after a coup in February 2021. (Reuters)